help please. anyone seen mucus like this before?

Long time smoker 18 yrs of pack and half and bud smoker. For 3 years I've coughed up this strange mucus but i figured it was normal. Now I'm not so sure. Recently quit but still coughing up dirty mucus a month later. Anyone ever seen mucus like this?

10 Replies

Maybe your lungs are working more efficiently now you've stopped smoking? Congratulations by the way, it aint an easy addiction to kick, but worth it. The reason lots of people say they get "colds" when they give up is because the lungs haven't been able to work properly before and now they are. Nicotine is a cough suppressant, believe it or not - drs used to recommend it to TB patients to stop the coughing which could lead to bleeding. That's why smokers cough so much in the mornngs before the first fag, remember that?

Can't comment on the quality of the mucus without seeing it and I don't particularly want to but if it's greenish or yellow maybe you should get it checked out, but maybe give it another month or so unless you're really worried.

I really think it's just your lungs clearning the backlog, assuming you have no other symptoms such as fever or chest pain, in which case get yourself checked out pronto.

Good luck and again, congratulations! You cd substitute bikkies for one of those former past-times, actually clears bronchial tubes

Clear is normal, not so sure about the dark speckles. Anyone else had this experience after giving up smoking? I didn't but then if it's the remnants of nicotine maybe my lungs are too stuffed to get it up.

I'd get that checked out if I were you - pls let us know what happens.

Hi, if the mucus you cough up is greenish in colour or brownish, then it could

be ( sounds like to me ) a chest infection, get a sterilised pill bottle or something ,and take a sputum sample into your GPs to be sent away to test ,to see which antibiotic is best suited to treat the infection, well done for stopping smoking ,

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